The Federal Trade Commission announced Tuesday that it has opened an investigation into Facebook after a data analytics firm collected the private data of more than fifty million users. Cambridge Analytica, the data company hired by the Trump campaign in 2016, has been accused of taking private information unbeknownst to users. The FTC will investigate whether or not Facebook violated a 2011 consent order with the FTC over its handling of user data and how the company notifies changes to its terms of service. Northeastern’s Professor Woodrow Hartzog, who specializes in privacy and data protection law, explains the possible legal fallout from this investigation.

The Federal Trade Commission announced Tuesday that it has opened an investigation into Facebook after a data analytics firm collected the private data of more than fifty million users.

Cambridge Analytica, the data company hired by the Trump campaign in 2016, has been accused of taking private information unbeknownst to users. The FTC will investigate whether or not Facebook violated a 2011 consent order with the FTC over its handling of user data and how the company notifies changes to its terms of service.

Danny Hajjar of News@Northeastern spoke with professor Woodrow Hartzog, who specializes in privacy and data protection law, to explain the possible legal fallout from this investigation. Professor Hartzog is a professor of law and computer science and holds a joint appointment in the School of Law and College of Computer Science.

News@Northeastern: What is the basis of the FTC investigation into Facebook? Woodrow Hartzog: In 2011, Facebook signed a contract with the FTC called a consent order. It’s an agreement in which Facebook promises not to make any misrepresentations about privacy or data security, to give notice to users if it uses certain nonpublic information, and to create a comprehensive privacy program. This complicates the investigation because if you look at the text of the consent order, it’s actually not immediately clear whether Facebook’s actions violated any of the terms of the consent order.